Many companies have a plurality of fabrication facilities (referred to herein as, “fabs”) with at least partially overlapping fabrication process technologies (e.g., common processes) in use at the various fabs. The fabs may be spread over small or large geographic areas, and may produce product mixes that have small or large overlaps in processing technologies. To provide the most effective use of equipment, maximize yield, and minimize defective products, it is desirable to coordinate the use of a best known method (BKM) across fabs using a given common process technology, particularly if the fabs are making the same product.
During production operations, one of the fabs may detect a problem that must be solved by implementing a change to one or more processing steps or conditions at that fab. Although the problem may not yet have arisen (or been detected) at any other fab, the other fabs sharing the same process technology might benefit from implementation of the same change. Further, if a new fab is established, and the previously existing fabs do not all maintain the same processes, the new fab may implement methods that are inferior to the BKMs. Prior engineering procedures do not provide a satisfactory method for managing the engineering change process.